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Trump doubles down on protectionism in first speech to Congress

The US president has addressed a joint session of Congress for the first time, pushing a number of controversial policies like a border wall and ending Obamacare. His speech also called for unity in the legislature.

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Trump addresses US Congress

US President Donald Trump delivered his first address to Congress since taking office on Tuesday in a speech ranging from immigration to healthcare to protectionism.

In an effort to stem criticism that he is hostile towards minority communities, Trump opened with a line about Black History Month coming to a close, acknowledging that "work remains to be done" in the field of civil rights. The president also condemned recent acts of vandalism and threats to Jewish communities as well as a racially motivated shooting in Kansas City last week.

The US is a "country that stands united in condemning hate," Trump said.

Trump reiterates campaign promises

Trump returned to a number of key promises from his successful election campaign, such as a vow to "drain the swamp" of Washington corruption by implementing new laws against ex-lawmakers becoming lobbyists. He also promised to "soon begin the construction of a great great wall" at the US-Mexico border, without elaborating on how that would be managed and funded.

Another chorus of the 2016 campaign, to "repeal and replace Obamacare," was met with applause from Republicans what sounded like an equal number of boos from Democrats. The Affordable Care Act, which has provided healthcare for 20 million previously uninsured Americans, has been the source of much consternation for Republican lawmakers recently, who have been met by crowds of angry constituents afraid of losing their coverage.

The president then turned to his immigration policies, which critics claim unfairly target Muslims. In January, an attempt to ban travel from seven Muslim-majority countries prompted widespread protest and was eventually blocked by a federal court.

In protest, many Democratic lawmakers brought refugees and immigrants as their guests to the speech:

Immigration overhaul, tax cuts

Trump called for an overhaul to promote legal immigration, following the "merit based" model of countries like Australia and Canada.

He then promised to create a database documenting crimes committed by illegal immigrants, despite numerous studies suggesting that immigrants are actually less likely to commit violent crime than those born in the US.

He also took Congress to task for partisan gridlock. Gesturing to both sides of the aisle, he called on lawmakers to "join forces and finally get the job done."

Trump's talk then took an emotional turn as he honored victims of violent crimes and the survivor of a rare disease who were sitting in the audience. He then asked everyone to applaud a teary-eyed Carryn Owens, the widow of Navy SEAL Ryan Owens, who was killed in a botched raid in Yemen ordered by Trump last month. He praised Owens, who "laid down his life for his friends, for his country, and for our freedom - we will never forget him."

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Reactions to Trump’s first congressional address

Reactions to Trump’s first congressional address

Infrastructure spending

The speech was not entirely straight-down-the-line conservative, however. Trump made reference to a recent meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and expressed his commitment to work with Canada's leader to promote female entrepreneurship. This, and mention of creating paid family leave were the rare remarks that drew applause from both Democrats and Republicans.

In another moment of damage control, Trump walked back comments critical of NATO that have had top allies worried for weeks. "We strongly support NATO," the president said, but reminded member nations that "we expect our partners, whether in NATO, in the Middle East or the Pacific to take a direct and meaningful role in both strategic and military operations, and pay their fair share of the cost."

The overall theme of the speech, which ran a bit like a best-of list of Trump's favorite topics, was the protectionism the new president has become known for. He vowed to make it more difficult for companies to leave the US, to take money that had been spent supporting foreign countries and use it to fix the "crumbling infrastructure" across the country, and to create incentives for companies to "buy American and hire American."

"America must put its own citizens first, because only then can we truly make America great again," Trump said.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

A quick way to fulfill campaign promises

Less than a month into his presidency, Donald Trump has issued 17 executive actions. While this number in itself is not remarkable - by the same time, Barack Obama had signed roughly the same number of executive orders - the content of Trump's decrees is. It seems the new president wants to implement many of his campaign promises - including the controversial ones - as quickly as possible.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

Executive orders and presidential memoranda

Executive actions (EA) allow the US president to give government agencies orders that do not need Congressional approval, circumventing the law-making process and speeding up the implementation process. Executive orders are a more wide-reaching form of EA that often deal with larger organizational directives, while presidential memoranda order specific agencies to do something.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

Weakening Obamacare

Executive Order: The first executive order that Trump signed was a missive on deferring, waving or delaying parts of the Affordable Care Act to "minimize regulatory burdens." While Trump alone can not repeal the healthcare law instated under President Obama, he can undermine the implementation of "Obamacare" while the Republican majority in Congress prepares to repeal the law.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

Pulling federal funding for abortion advice

Presidential Memorandum: Trump re-instated a policy that bars US federal funding for non-governmental organizations that provide abortion counseling and advocate for abortion rights. This directive was initially instated by Republican president Ronald Reagan, rescinded by Democrat Bill Clinton, re-instated by Republican George W. Bush and again rescinded by Democrat Barack Obama.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

Deportation of undocumented immigrants

Executive Order: Trump ordered immigration agents to vastly expand the scope of deportations. He wants federal grants to be pulled from sanctuary cities (where undocumented migrants are not prosecuted) and immigrants suspected of a crime to be detained, even if they were not charged. He plans to hire 10,000 new immigration agents and publish a report on crimes committed by undocumented immigrants.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

Building the Wall

Executive Order: In an executive order signed on January 25, President Trump called for "the immediate construction of a physical wall" in order to secure the US-Mexico border. He also referred to undocumented immigrants as "removable aliens," saying that the executive branch should "end the abuse of parole and asylum provisions currently used to prevent the lawful removal of removable aliens."

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

Travel ban and halting refugee intake

Executive Order: Trump signed this controversial order on January 27. It banned people from seven majority-Muslim countries from entering the US for three months, stopped the Syrian refugee program indefinitely and suspended refugee admissions for 120 days. Protests against the order erupted across the country and even Republican senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham criticized the policy.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

The United States pulls out of TPP

Memorandum: It was no surprise that Donald Trump abandoned the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). During his campaign, he frequently criticized the TPP and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), saying that other countries benefited from these trade agreements at the expense of the US. Press secretary Sean Spicer said Trump prefered deals with individual countries.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

Oil pipelines, if they're made from US steel

Three different memoranda: One on constructing the Dakota Access Pipeline, another on continuing construction of the Keystone pipeline, and a third order on using American materials to build all pipelines - were issued on Trump's fourth day in office. Barack Obama had denied permits to both pipelines after massive protests from environmentalists, who feared the potential impact of spills.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

Expand the military, freeze other government hiring

Memoranda: Trump quickly lived up to his campaign promise to invest in a bigger military, signing a memorandum for more troops, warships and a modernized nuclear arsenal a week into his presidency. Four days earlier, he ordered a freeze on the hiring of new civilian employees in federal agencies for up to 90 days, so that his administration could develop a long-term plan to shrink the workforce.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

Lobbying, National Security Council and IS

Executive order: Every new government appointee will sign an ethics pledge that bans them from working as a lobbyist for five years after leaving their post and from ever lobbying the US government for other countries. On the same day, he issued two further memoranda ordering the Department of Defense to formulate a plan to defeat IS within 30 days and to reorganize the National Security Council.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

Steve Bannon in the National Security Council

Memorandum: Trump ordered an overhaul of the National Security Council (NSC) to elevate the role of Stephen Bannon. He removed several senior members from the foreign policy decision-making panel while Trump's chief strategist, known for his far-right views, will serve on the committee usually staffed with generals. This breaks with the long-held norm of not appointing political actors to the NSC.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

Deregulate, deregulate, deregulate

Executive Orders and Memorandum: Trump wants federal agencies to eliminate at least two prior regulations for every new regulation. He ordered a freeze on new and pending federal regulations, until a Trump-appointed department head could revise them. He also asked for the approval of "high priority infrastructure projects" to be sped up.

Fast work: Donald Trump's executive actions so far

Presidential precedent

President Barack Obama issued a total of 277 executive orders - an average of roughly three per month, slightly fewer than his predecessor George W. Bush at 291. However, Obama issued 644 presidential memoranda during his time in office to get around blocks in Congress - a precedent Trump appears to be following.